Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care News
September 2020
Texas Homeless Network is the lead agency for the Texas Balance of State Continuum of Care (TX BoS CoC). The TX BoS CoC is a group of stakeholders that collaboratively plan and operate the CoC and a range of housing and services to prevent and end homelessness. The TX BoS CoC covers 215 counties and includes 28 Local Homeless Coalitions (LHCs) that plan, deliver, and evaluate local systems.
Announcements
Submit Facts and Photos for a CoC Celebration

Spotlight accomplishments in your community! THN staff are creating a presentation about successes across the CoC over the past year. The video will highlight the work you’re doing to prevent and end homelessness. And we need your facts and photos to make it happen! 

This year we won’t be able to meet in person for the October General Meeting, but a video will be the next-best thing. Submit your pictures and brief facts so we can celebrate you and your community on October 14th! Submission form can be found here.

Deadline to submit: Friday, October 2nd by 11:59 p.m.
Coordinated Entry COVID-19 Prioritization Standards

The TX BoS CoC Board approved time-limited Coordinated Entry COVID-19 Prioritization Standards. Prioritization standards ensure households seeking assistance through Coordinated Entry with the most severe service needs and vulnerabilities are prioritized for housing first, and these standards include COVID-19 risk factors. All Rapid Re-Housing and Permanent Supportive Housing openings regardless of funding source will use these prioritization standards between September 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021.

As more information about COVID-19 becomes available, the TX BoS CoC will continue to evaluate and adjust prioritization policies based on evolving information and circumstances.

For more information:

Please email any questions to CE@THN.org.
Congratulations to the newly elected CoC Board members! And thanks to all the CoC general members who voted. We received more than three times the number of votes as in last year’s election!

New board members’ terms will begin in October and go through September 2022. Stay tuned for more information about board members on THN’s website.

Seat 2 – Homeless Veterans
  • Pamela Segura  – Substance Abuse Specialist, West Texas VA Medical Center

Seat 4 – Homeless Families
  • Katherine Bisson – Executive Director, Abilene Hope Haven

Seat 6 – Victim Services
  • Daisy Lopez – Victim and Education Manager, Friendship of Women

Seat 8 – Health/ Medical
  • Tavia Hatfield – Regional Director of Community Health Investment, Covenant Health/Providence Health

Seat 10 – Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Recipient/ Entitlement Jurisdictions
  • Emily Shafer Northrup – Homeless Outreach Coordinator, City of Corpus Christi

Seat 12 – Law Enforcement/ Criminal Justice
  • Kyle Moore – Police Officer, Killeen Police Department Homeless Outreach Team

Seat 14 – Faith Community or Faith-Based Organization
  • Daphne Adams – Director of Family Services, Christian Community Action
Important Dates
SEPTEMBER

*No CoC General Meeting in September


September 2020 CESC Meeting
Tuesday 15 September 2020, 10:15 AM - 11:45 AM
The TX BoS CoC will be hosting a virtual meeting for the Coordinated Entry Steering Committee (CESC). The CESC provides direct support and guidance to the CoC’s systems change efforts.
*Closed Meeting. Please email ce@thn.org for more information.


2020 HMIS Data Security, Privacy, and Ethics Webinar
Wednesday 16 September 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
Topic: Mandatory annual Data Quality Webinar for HMIS Users in the Texas Balance of State CoC.
Who is mandated to attend: All current HMIS users and active HMIS trainees
Register Here


September 2020 TX BoS Board Meeting
Wednesday 23 September 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
*Closed Meeting

OCTOBER

October 2020 Ex. Committee
Thursday 1 October 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
*Closed Meeting


Coordinated Entry Racial Equity Analysis: Findings from a Multi-Community Study
Tuesday 13 October 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
Topic: Although designed to prioritize those with the greatest need, Coordinated Entry Systems may be perpetuating systemic racial inequities through the use of untested tools like the VI-SPADT.
Who Should Attend:
  • General THN Members,
  • TX BoS Membership,
  • Local Homeless Coalitions
  • General Community Members
Register Here


October 2020 General Meeting
Wednesday 14 October 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
Topic: CoC Governance Charter and other governance documents
Register Here


October 2020 TX BoS Board Meeting
Wednesday 28 October 2020, 02:00 PM - 03:30 PM
*Closed Meeting


NOVEMBER

*No CoC General Meeting in November


November 2020 TX BoS Board Meeting
Wednesday 18 November 2020, 02:00 PM - 04:00 PM
*Closed Meeting
Opportunities
Open Funding Opportunities

We are currently in the process of adding a new section to our website to help collect all funding opportunities made available to Texas including city, state, and federal programs.

In the meantime check out this PDF of all current available funding options here
Join the TX BoS Data Committee

Texas Balance of State (TX BoS) is looking for individuals interested in data! TX BoS wants to work hand in hand with community members to establish expectations around data collection, use, and upkeep. In order to do this, TX BoS has established a Data Committee to focus specifically on Texas Balance of State HMIS (Homeless Management Information System) data.

The purpose of the TX BoS Data Committee is to provide data-driven insight and education to multiple groups/stakeholders about homelessness in the Texas Balance of State. The TX BoS Data Committee would also be a way of providing feedback from HMIS end users on specific data matters such as HMIS Policies and Procedures, the HMIS Data Quality and Management Plan, data security, Point In Time Count information, and the TX BoS HMIS implementation.

The Data Committee had previously been put on hold due to COVID-19. We understand that this turbulent time means many people are stretched thin, and they may not have the capacity to participate like they might in normal times. We want to be transparent that committee members should be able to commit to 1-3 hours a month to the committee. This time would include webinars, calls, and reviews of data and policy documents.

If you are interested in participating in the Data Committee, please fill out this interest form.

If you have any questions about the committee, feel free to reach out to data@thn.org.
2020 Census: Information for CoCs

We appreciate HUD and the Continua of Care (CoCs) providing additional locations and addresses for the Service-Based Enumeration (SBE) operation of the 2020 Census. However, we caution against waiting too late to provide location information. Any delays will increase the risk of not counting the SBE addresses due to the lack of adequate time for staffing and logistics planning for significant additions.

If your agency has information to provide to the Area Census Offices (ACOs), please do so now by emailing dcmd.group.quarters.eresponse@census.gov (the primary email address) or dcmd.group.quarters@census.gov (another active address we shared in HUD’s Office Hours on Friday, September 4).

September 18, 2020 is the last date to submit address information for the 2020 Census SBE operation in order to include the address in our 2020 Census frame. Once the ACO stops adding cases, we will not be able to include those locations in the 2020 Census. It is important that service-based locations reach out to the Census Bureau immediately via the dcmd.group.quarters.eresponse@census.gov to ensure they get counted.

Continua of Cares and providers will be contacted by their Area Census Office (ACOs) to confirm service-based enumeration processes and locations by September 11.
  • Service-Based Enumeration (shelters, soup kitchens, etc.) counts will take place between September 22-24
  • Targeted Non-Sheltered Outdoor Locations (unsheltered) counts will take place the night of September 23 into the morning of September 24
  • Providers are encouraged to inform their clients of the Census dates, and that enumerators will wear bright orange vests during the unsheltered count

ACOs will be adding service-based enumeration locations up until September 21, so be sure to be in contact with your ACO to establish your site as an enumeration location if you have not been contacted by September 11.

If you have additional questions about the Census process for people experiencing homelessness, please email dcmd.group.quarters@census.gov.
Across the TX BoS CoC...
North



South

East

West


Central

These articles were gathered from Google Alerts and emails sent directly to us. If you have articles about your community's efforts to prevent and end homelessness that you want highlighted in our next newsletter, please email the articles to txboscoc@thn.org.
Staff Recommendations


The following are resources TX BoS CoC Lead Agency staff have found that we believe would be beneficial to your local efforts to make homelessness rare, brief, and one-time:
Our recommendation this month come's from Sophia, the Director of CoC Programs:

Language in Seattle-area rental ads divides neighborhoods along racial lines, UW study finds

"The study underscores many academics’, authors’ and activists’ depiction of racism as subtle, insidious and present in nearly every institution of American life — including the rental housing market."

Read the full article here
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Anyone who works or lives in the CoC's geographic area, and all housing and homeless services projects in the CoC's geographic area, are considered to be members of the CoC. The CoC has an open invitation process, so members may join at any time.

THN invites members to participate in the CoC's activities. Learn more on the email list, the website, and social media. CoC General Meeting minutes and recordings are posted on THN's website, in the TX BoS CoC "Get Involved" page at https://www.thn.org/texas-balance-state-continuum-care/get-involved/. Presentations by and conversations between CoC members and staff on relevant topics keep members informed and up-to-date.

Share this email with anyone you think may be interested!
CoC General Meeting Schedule

Stay informed about CoC happenings by participating in the bi-monthly webinars. Each meeting will feature a topic that is important to preventing and ending homelessness. See the Get Involved page for dates, topics, and registration links.
CoC Program Funding

If you are a representative of an agency that is interested in applying for United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Continuum of Care (CoC) Program funding, please contact txboscoc@thn.org.
The TX BoS CoC is a focus area of the Texas Homeless Network.